St. Lucia
Trip Report 2015
Chillin' in the Villa
(Winter Escape)
Chillin' in the Villa
(Winter Escape)
This trip was hastily thrown together when my spouse demanded a winter escape for 2015. I had just come off of an annual round of shows that puts me in Vegas for 6 nights & Anaheim for 7 nights every January. She had been stuck in frigid Toronto & she demanded satisfaction. I easily complied & did a mad search for rental accommodations somewhere in the south Caribbean sea to guarantee heat in February. I wanted private. Close to a town. A pool. A veranda. A direct Air Canada flight. I rolled through all of the islands. A villa in Tobago sounded good but no direct flights. Grenada was over budget. Curacao sounded horrible & expensive. Etc. My focus landed on St. Lucia. A villa in the hills near Soufrière. A house in Rodney Bay. I searched everything.
Finally, I found the Cinnamon Beach Villa near Rodney Bay in the northwest - on the Caribbean side of the island. It was on Flipkey but Sotheby's Real Estate in Rodney Bay also showed that it was for sale. The reviews were good so we sent a deposit & booked the flight on Aeroplan points - cattle class for only $234.52 total for 2. Villa $2739 US for 11 nights.
St. Lucia is a small island in the Windward part of the Lesser Antilles. It is very hilly with only 174,000 residents who live mainly on the coast. The main airport is in the southeast tip at Vieux Forts with the largest towns of Soufrière, Castries & Gros Islet all on the west. Castries is the capital & the cruise port terminal for the island. The Pitons near Soufrière are the main geological tourist attraction illustrating the island's volcanic past. Of course, the smoking volcano helps as well . . .
Finally, I found the Cinnamon Beach Villa near Rodney Bay in the northwest - on the Caribbean side of the island. It was on Flipkey but Sotheby's Real Estate in Rodney Bay also showed that it was for sale. The reviews were good so we sent a deposit & booked the flight on Aeroplan points - cattle class for only $234.52 total for 2. Villa $2739 US for 11 nights.
St. Lucia is a small island in the Windward part of the Lesser Antilles. It is very hilly with only 174,000 residents who live mainly on the coast. The main airport is in the southeast tip at Vieux Forts with the largest towns of Soufrière, Castries & Gros Islet all on the west. Castries is the capital & the cruise port terminal for the island. The Pitons near Soufrière are the main geological tourist attraction illustrating the island's volcanic past. Of course, the smoking volcano helps as well . . .
Itinerary
Feb 2 - Toronto to UVF St. Lucia Pre-arranged 1 1/2 drive to villa south of Rodney Bay 11 nights - Cinnamon Beach Villa - source: Flipkey Feb 13 - Transfer to UVF - UVF to Toronto |
Departure Crises . . . and yes, that is plural . . .
The tripped started out in near collapse with an early morning call from the nursing home around 1am. My wife's 87 year old mother was in distress. Since we had been through this a number of times, we knew the symptoms & prognosis & although she had to be hospitalized there was really nothing we could do to help the situation. My wife's siblings were primed to oversee any issues so we made the decision to still go. But it certainly added some stress & anguish for the first couple of days with a number of calls home along the way to assess the situation.
And then there was the blizzard . . . Yeah, that's right, an honest to God good ole Canadian dump of snow plus the sheer bliss of blowing snow. About 8" of snow fell overnight & the city was telling people to stay off the roads if possible. But the Air Canada site said the flight would still depart on time. They were - of course - just dreaming - but we were a go. I cleared a car path to the street for the limo. And I cleared the end of the driveway again after a snowplow went by & dumped the usual mountain. That last bit was the part that did me in. I hurt my back, which I didn't know until it kicked in later in the long day.
And then the taxi to the airport was a no-show . . . Nothing at 7am & they usually show up early. 7:05, 7;10. No answer at the overloaded taxi number. 106 calls back at another cab number. Panic? No . . . we were going, damn it! My 'determined' mode kicked in & we threw the luggage into our trusty MB AWD car & we set out to drive ourselves at around 7:25. The highways were crap but the traffic was moving. Good snow tires & all wheel drive do not suck when the roads do.
Throwing expense to the wind we tossed the keys to the frozen guys in Valet Parking. $28 for the 1st day & $24 per after that. Whoa! But we had a flight to catch. Even as we checked in it was showing on time. We had less than 1 1/2 hours now & an amazingly long security line up in international. Monday morning in a blizzard! WTF? I guess everybody was trying to escape the country for anywhere without snow - kind of like what we were doing. Luckily, my status allowed us to jump the line.
And then . . . and only then . . . the gate was finally showing a 40 minute delay. After boarding, this stretched, as a multitude of 10 minute delays piled on. Frozen this. Frozen that. A timed out crew change was 20 minutes. De-icing. By the time we took off, we were looking at a projected delay of 2 hours on arrival. I was zen about it because . . . we were on holidays!
The tripped started out in near collapse with an early morning call from the nursing home around 1am. My wife's 87 year old mother was in distress. Since we had been through this a number of times, we knew the symptoms & prognosis & although she had to be hospitalized there was really nothing we could do to help the situation. My wife's siblings were primed to oversee any issues so we made the decision to still go. But it certainly added some stress & anguish for the first couple of days with a number of calls home along the way to assess the situation.
And then there was the blizzard . . . Yeah, that's right, an honest to God good ole Canadian dump of snow plus the sheer bliss of blowing snow. About 8" of snow fell overnight & the city was telling people to stay off the roads if possible. But the Air Canada site said the flight would still depart on time. They were - of course - just dreaming - but we were a go. I cleared a car path to the street for the limo. And I cleared the end of the driveway again after a snowplow went by & dumped the usual mountain. That last bit was the part that did me in. I hurt my back, which I didn't know until it kicked in later in the long day.
And then the taxi to the airport was a no-show . . . Nothing at 7am & they usually show up early. 7:05, 7;10. No answer at the overloaded taxi number. 106 calls back at another cab number. Panic? No . . . we were going, damn it! My 'determined' mode kicked in & we threw the luggage into our trusty MB AWD car & we set out to drive ourselves at around 7:25. The highways were crap but the traffic was moving. Good snow tires & all wheel drive do not suck when the roads do.
Throwing expense to the wind we tossed the keys to the frozen guys in Valet Parking. $28 for the 1st day & $24 per after that. Whoa! But we had a flight to catch. Even as we checked in it was showing on time. We had less than 1 1/2 hours now & an amazingly long security line up in international. Monday morning in a blizzard! WTF? I guess everybody was trying to escape the country for anywhere without snow - kind of like what we were doing. Luckily, my status allowed us to jump the line.
And then . . . and only then . . . the gate was finally showing a 40 minute delay. After boarding, this stretched, as a multitude of 10 minute delays piled on. Frozen this. Frozen that. A timed out crew change was 20 minutes. De-icing. By the time we took off, we were looking at a projected delay of 2 hours on arrival. I was zen about it because . . . we were on holidays!
Arrival at Vieux Fort in St Lucia was relatively painless & we tumbled out into the humid air in a darkening sky & into the helpful arms of our driver Whats-his-name, who was there with a sign. The drive to the villa was completely in the dark unfortunately. We went up the east coast cutting west at Dennery for up & over the rain forest in the middle, to pop out at Cul de Sac on the west coast. Whats-his-name answered our questions & drove carefully through the mountains. Ghostly houses disappeared into the jungle & food stands stood lonely beside the winding road. Banana plantations whisked by in the dark. The few settlements were just blots of colorful crumbling & tumbledown shacks with cars & miscellaneous debris littering their yards.
We stopped in Cul de Sac - at a gritty 'Super J' IGA grocery store for supplies. It was dark & we were the only tourists in sight in the drab store. Yes, we got some less-than-kind looks from the locals who were shopping along side of us. Note: Island Prices In Effect!!! Everything was at least 20% more than our prices. And then there was a 10% VAT on many goods as well! And their meat selection sucked. We bought enough for 2 days of lunches & dinners & some liquor - a couple of bottles of red wine & some local rum - Chairman's Reserve & some vodka + mixes. We spent $90 US. They freely accepted either the Eastern Caribbean dollar or US dollars everywhere with a reasonable exchange (usually $1 US = $2.50 - 2.67 XCD). The wine selection was dismal - which was a trend that continued throughout our stay despite my numerous stabs at it. I defaulted to a cheap Argentinian Malbec which became my island staple.
Finally just before 8pm (Atlantic Std Time now - no longer EST) we arrived at the villa.
We stopped in Cul de Sac - at a gritty 'Super J' IGA grocery store for supplies. It was dark & we were the only tourists in sight in the drab store. Yes, we got some less-than-kind looks from the locals who were shopping along side of us. Note: Island Prices In Effect!!! Everything was at least 20% more than our prices. And then there was a 10% VAT on many goods as well! And their meat selection sucked. We bought enough for 2 days of lunches & dinners & some liquor - a couple of bottles of red wine & some local rum - Chairman's Reserve & some vodka + mixes. We spent $90 US. They freely accepted either the Eastern Caribbean dollar or US dollars everywhere with a reasonable exchange (usually $1 US = $2.50 - 2.67 XCD). The wine selection was dismal - which was a trend that continued throughout our stay despite my numerous stabs at it. I defaulted to a cheap Argentinian Malbec which became my island staple.
Finally just before 8pm (Atlantic Std Time now - no longer EST) we arrived at the villa.
Cinnamon Beach Villa
Bois d'Orange, St. Lucia
Bois d'Orange, St. Lucia
The villa was on the left splinter of the right spike off of the Trouya Point road just after the Windjammer Resort turn off to the left. Confused? In the dark it felt like we were in the middle of the rain forest. But then we swung into the front gate & swerved up - and I mean seriously up btw - and into the carport beside the house & onto the only level point of the whole driveway.
We were greeted by the property manager with keys & a bottle of bubbly as well as the instructions for the villa & a cell phone for local use. Then everybody left & we poured a drink & settled in to listen to the tree frogs dweeb in the distance. Wow! It was better than expected.
We were greeted by the property manager with keys & a bottle of bubbly as well as the instructions for the villa & a cell phone for local use. Then everybody left & we poured a drink & settled in to listen to the tree frogs dweeb in the distance. Wow! It was better than expected.
The next morning we were finally able to view our surroundings. We had an amazing view of the Trouya Point area - dotted with expensive villas - and a great view of the sea with all of its traffic i.e. cruise ships, oil tankers, sailboats big & small, water taxis & even some tall ships that ply the waves between the islands.
When we booked it, the reviews were good. However, just after we sent in the last payment, a couple of negative reviews appeared on Trip Advisor. No WiFi. The pool was rough. The stairs were falling apart. The barbecue was dead. Etc. Etc. When we emailed our concerns to the agent, he told us that there was a new agent for the house now. Hmmmmmmmmm. She assured us that all would be well, but we left with a 'make the best of it' attitude. Well, we needn't have worried. We can only assume that the bad reviews or a house showing to prospective buyers carried some weight & some things were repaired before our arrival.
The house sits 20-30 meters above road level on the side of the most southerly Bois d"Orange hill. The whole property is on the hillside. It is on 3 levels & faces west. The pool level is the lowest - in the middle of the property - in the sun for the whole afternoon leading to excellent swimming temperatures without a pool heater. 43 bouncy stairs take you up to the main level which sports the huge veranda across the front of the house, kitchen, living room, & a small bedroom. The back part of the house is separated by an outdoor atrium with another washroom on a landing halfway up. A few more stairs up to an outdoor covered hallway connecting the master bedroom & bath - with shower & Jacuzzi, 2 additional bedrooms & another bath with shower. This upper back area is completely gated with a lockable iron gate to secure the sleeping quarters at night. Of course, a baddie can find their way in through the balcony off the master bedroom but they will really have to work at it. All beds have mosquito netting . . . and you do need it! We were chewed up nicely the first night until we learned to tuck the netting in correctly & secure the flap. A citronella candle or a Pic coil proved helpful for our late nights on the veranda.
Overall, the house was rustic with the feel of that family cottage that many of us went to back in the day. It is for sale for $650,000 US. It would need some $50K of renos to make it spectacular again, but it was a great spot for us. It was very private. We could see people working in their yards as specks in the distance. If you wanted to just strip & flop in the pool, no one could peek. We did most of our own cooking for the holiday, grilling meat on the barbecue & the gas range. We were very, very comfortable.
Note: We have just heard that the couple that rented the villa after us suffered a break-in while they were visiting the nearby Windjammer. An iPad & several other things were stolen with no visible signs of a break-in.
When we booked it, the reviews were good. However, just after we sent in the last payment, a couple of negative reviews appeared on Trip Advisor. No WiFi. The pool was rough. The stairs were falling apart. The barbecue was dead. Etc. Etc. When we emailed our concerns to the agent, he told us that there was a new agent for the house now. Hmmmmmmmmm. She assured us that all would be well, but we left with a 'make the best of it' attitude. Well, we needn't have worried. We can only assume that the bad reviews or a house showing to prospective buyers carried some weight & some things were repaired before our arrival.
The house sits 20-30 meters above road level on the side of the most southerly Bois d"Orange hill. The whole property is on the hillside. It is on 3 levels & faces west. The pool level is the lowest - in the middle of the property - in the sun for the whole afternoon leading to excellent swimming temperatures without a pool heater. 43 bouncy stairs take you up to the main level which sports the huge veranda across the front of the house, kitchen, living room, & a small bedroom. The back part of the house is separated by an outdoor atrium with another washroom on a landing halfway up. A few more stairs up to an outdoor covered hallway connecting the master bedroom & bath - with shower & Jacuzzi, 2 additional bedrooms & another bath with shower. This upper back area is completely gated with a lockable iron gate to secure the sleeping quarters at night. Of course, a baddie can find their way in through the balcony off the master bedroom but they will really have to work at it. All beds have mosquito netting . . . and you do need it! We were chewed up nicely the first night until we learned to tuck the netting in correctly & secure the flap. A citronella candle or a Pic coil proved helpful for our late nights on the veranda.
Overall, the house was rustic with the feel of that family cottage that many of us went to back in the day. It is for sale for $650,000 US. It would need some $50K of renos to make it spectacular again, but it was a great spot for us. It was very private. We could see people working in their yards as specks in the distance. If you wanted to just strip & flop in the pool, no one could peek. We did most of our own cooking for the holiday, grilling meat on the barbecue & the gas range. We were very, very comfortable.
Note: We have just heard that the couple that rented the villa after us suffered a break-in while they were visiting the nearby Windjammer. An iPad & several other things were stolen with no visible signs of a break-in.
Some grocery bills to put it all in context. Note: $1US=$2.65 XCD in these examples.
And the El Dorado Special Rsve 15YR on the bill to the left is one of the finest rums in the world.
And the El Dorado Special Rsve 15YR on the bill to the left is one of the finest rums in the world.